How Three Young Leaders Went Beyond Boasting and Posting to Hosting
As sad as they are, I find that treasures often emerge after a tragedy. That’s exactly what we’ve seen in the aftermath of the George Floyd murder at the hands of Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin. Over the last several weeks, the whole world has witnessed protesters, mostly young protesters, gathering in major cities to…
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Five Ideas to Overcome the Challenge of Virtual Learning This Fall
Most of us weren’t quite sure what would happen when the nationwide quarantine was mandated and both parents and their kids found themselves attempting to work from home. What we now realize is that those students and their parents agree on one thing: Virtual learning didn’t work too well. Most moms and dads agree there…
Continue ReadingHow to Stop Being a Control Freak with Your Kids
I just spoke to Sharon, a mom who is now teaching her three kids at home during the COVID-19 pandemic. The first few days were novel and even fun. The adrenaline that flows from doing something new had kicked in. Now, it’s a different story. Sharon told me recently her biggest struggle is wanting to…
Continue ReadingHow Our Parenting Has Changed Over the Years
A hundred years ago, we read stories of how families were larger, how kids were to speak only when spoken to, and how parents enjoyed a more influential voice in their teens’ lives. In most cases, the acceptable style was command and control. My research shows that much of that narrative is true. There was…
Continue ReadingFour of the Best Ways to Make the Most of This Season
I love remembering the story of two young men who both contracted the deadly disease, Polio, almost a hundred years ago. One man became understandably bitter over his prognosis. He would be confined to a wheelchair and never get to do what most young men do at his age. He decided to give up on…
Continue ReadingFive Changes Schools Plan to Make This Fall
At Growing Leaders, we have the privilege of interacting with lots of school administrators, athletic directors, and department heads. Obviously, with such a strange spring semester behind us, these leaders are planning for a new normal this fall. No one I have spoken with plans for life to go completely back to how it was…
Continue ReadingSix Metaphors to Build an Incubator of Peace for Your Kids
A little while ago, I heard about a news report that gave me pause. ABC’s Good Morning America team interviewed the Chief of the New York Fire Department who said not only are the people infected by the coronavirus increasing in New York, but 23 percent of first responders have now been infected. The ones…
Continue ReadingLife Skills: The Class Some Students Are Asking for
After teaching the art of communication to some high school seniors, I turned them loose to apply what they’d learned. In groups of three, students stood up front to speak on a topic they felt passionate about. One group specifically caught my attention. The group members spoke about how much they wished for a class…
Continue ReadingSeven Practical Strategies to Talk About Mental Health with Your Kids
Even though mental health issues are on the forefront of our minds today, the topic still carries a stigma for many. Talking about depression can be hard. Trina, a sophomore in college, recently said to me, “We look around us and everyone else seems happy, and we feel we must be the only ones who…
Continue ReadingHow Schools Can Practice Good Timing This Fall
Did you notice that people experienced an ebb and flow to their emotional state since we were all quarantined in March? I sure you did. At first, we were refreshed, by not having to drive to work or even get dressed up for Zoom meetings. Then, we declined a bit emotionally when we all got…
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